Man United v AC Milan - CL semi first leg postgame [R]

[Achtung]

New thread. Have at. :D

http://newsimg.bbc.co.uk/media/images/42843000/jpg/_42843309_ab6.jpg

[bestbecks]

What a game. Absolutely stunning stuff. Exhilarating from start to finish. I was at the pub for this one and the place went absolutely mad when Rooney put in the back of the net in the last minute.

I think there are a few really important things to take away from this match. We came out in the first half looking sharp and ready to run at the Milan defense. Ronaldo looked like he was going to enjoy himself tonight and Carrick and Fletcher looked to have at them from the word go. I was expecting to see Smith in the starting XI but Fergie opted for the 4-3-3 which Smith would be out of place in. Ronaldo and Giggs switched wings immediatley. Ronaldo figured he's have a better shot at drawing double coverage on him knowing full well that had he been attacking the right flank Maldini would have used his experience against him and would not have been drawn to him leaving acres of space for Rooney in the middle. Ronaldo was in double coverage all match long, but he still found ways to assert himself in the match. He was running through, getting shots off (nearly scoring a couple) and creating space for the rest of his teammates in the middle of the pitch.

Speaking of the middle of the pitch there were some great battles today. Firstly I want to say that Gattuso was an absolute beast in the middle of the park. He started off at right wing but he wandered (as he does so often) and broke up A LOT of our attacks coming in from the middle. Scholes and Carrick were frustrated by him on numerous occasions. Seedorf had a decent game for Milan as well. That through ball to Kaka was terrific. He is so good at keeping the ball and slowing down the pace of the game. Kaka had an excellent first half for Milan today. Obviously he scored both goals which leaves them with plenty of life in this tie. His first was superb (VDS could have done better mind you) and so well placed that even had Van Der Sar reacted better I doubt he would have saved it. As for our players... a game of two halves. The first 10-15 minutes of the match we were great, but then we slowed down. We started playing Milan's game instead of our own. AC Milan like to slow to pace of the match, everyone knows that, but if you want to be successful against them you have to play one touch football... make them react to passes that they aren't used to. We did that in the beginning but dropped off. Milan felt out the game and thought "Okay... lets not panic, we're down 1-0 but we've been here before. Let's slow this down" and Seedorf and Gattuso and Pirlo did that very well in the first half. Roll on second half and we see our lads take this game into their own hands. Fletcher, Carrick, Rooney, and Scholes had finally understood that they MUST play it quickly. Fletcher was, IMO, the Man of the Match... before Rooney bagged his brace. He cut out EVERYTHING that Milan tried to do in the second half. His relentless work rate and energy was vital to our win today. he tracked back when necessary, he attacked when it was an opportunistic time, and he stayed in the middle to play that defensive midfielder role to near perfection. Carrick did a great job of picking out his passes. He knew where to play the ball and who to play it to. Scholes was very quite in the first half, but that little flick to Rooney was unbelievable. That is experience and talent comign together to create a wonderful goal.

Rooney was excellent in the second half, and with Maldini and Gattuso out he knew he could exploit the middle of Milan's back line. He did that. Two great goals (both the products of superb passes).

Our back line looked rubbish. Heinze starting in the middle against Milan is not what we needed tonight.He tried his best and got some good tackles in, and whenever he covered in at left back for the attacking Evra he did really well. The second Kaka goal was Evra's mistake - he should have never gone rushing in like that - and by the time the two of them got up it was 2-1 to AC Milan.

The second half was ours. We came out like we did in the first except this time we kept the tempo up and our foot on the gas. We stopped playing to suit Milan and started to force them to play it our way... quick, precise, and energetic. Apparently Milan doesn't like to play like that...

Great game from a neutrals perspective, near heart attack from a United fan's perspective, and hopeful from a Milan fan's perspective. We've managed to pull out a miraculous comeback and get ourselves a foot in the final, but there is still all to play for. Now if we get a goal in Italy which I think is entirely possible (just look at Bayern Munich) then we're through no question about it. Good game, but we could have done better, definitely.

[SirManchester]

I was watching the game at work, I had to rush to class and I'm posting from there now, I can't help it, I'm absolutely ********ing buzzing.

What a comeback. First of all, let me reiterate it was never going to be easy, this Milan side was pure quality in the first half. Nevermind our defensive blunders, their experience showed. They were unbelieveably composed considering this was a semi-final first leg AT OLD TRAFFORD. Kaka has to be one of the most unphased players in big games, this away tie didn't effect him at all. He was dangerous all the way to the end and we have to give credit for his two goals, both taken brilliantly. Milan have an amazing ability to move the ball around. In Pirlo, Gattusso and Seedorf they have three of the best passers in Europe and part of why they got the better of us in the first half was because they had more possession and did the smart thing against a side like us - pass the ball around very quickly. They also took advantage of that left side, O'Shea looked lost at times against three players who constantly interchanged attacking that side. The entire backline including Fletcher had to cover for him at times.

But again, this was an incredible comeback, a tale of two halves if I must say so. We didn't look completely out of it in the first half, we did show signs that we were intent on taking this game by the neck but once Milan equalized we looked a bit shocked and even more so after Kaka's second goal. We were fortunate that the half ended at that point, Milan could have gone and broken our confidence and scored a third if they could. As I said before the match, Milan has been called a team of 45 minutes because they can't last or bring their game for the entire ninety minutes. (I don't know why Maldini keeps starting knowing they have to sub him off at halftime every game)

We started the second half much like we started the first and only got going when Milan began to look really tired. Ambrosini started slowing down and once we threw everyone forward, Milan had to call everyone back. Scholes' play to Rooney for the second goal was nothing short of magnificent, we finally were able to break through their defense (I haven't seen Nesta looking this worn out after the game for some time) I don't think Gattusso's injury had so much to do with our comeback. He was covering a lot of ground but all he did was commit stupid fouls, playact and waste time. The best thing to come out of his substitution was giving us the opportunity to regain momentum and not having it stopped by silly antics.

One thing that bothered me about our tactics is that we made a conscious decision to not man-mark Kaka and it cost us. We knew we were going to risk our attacking style by sticking players to strictly marking Kaka. But are we going to go into the second leg with similar tactics? I was even thinking at one point, perhaps we should throw on Smith to sit there infront of defense and annoy Kaka.

VDS really didn't have to do so much, but he did make some important saves, neither goal was really his fault, although one can argue he could have stretched a bit more for the first goal, then again, that couldn't have been taken any better.

As for the rest of the team, most of our players weren't impressive in the first half but had a hell of a game in the second.

Wes and Gabby showed once again why they don't belong together. They are so different I can't think of two defenders that are so incompatable as these two. The second half on the other hand was such a turn around, Wes did a great job making clearances and Heinze made world class crunching tackles, that last one against Kaka was brilliant. He'll be back where he belongs for the next leg - on the left.

O'Shea was terrible in the first half, then again, I can't blame him, he was man-handled by virtually every Milan player on their attacks. His runs up and some of his tackles in the second half were actually inspirational.
Evra's yellow was absurd, if anything Oddo should have been booked, it's a giant shame because he could have been key in the second leg.

Speaking of inspirational, dare I say Darren "European Man of the Match" Fletcher? Once again he showed up, and how so. I'm really beginning to feel that we don't need another defensive minded midfielder if he keeps up like this and if accomodates ot this role. I hope Fergie will work at this. His work rate and quick thinking was KEY to the comeback. Scholes was more subdued but that's because he knew he was in risk of getting booked. But his lob to Rooney was one of the best assists I've ever seen. Pure class from a classy world class player. Deco eat your black heart out! I do wonder though how he will play in the second leg. Will he be as subdued as today or does he risk participating in the final (again) to secure our victory. That will be one of the things to look out for next leg.

Giggs was unfortunate that his crosses weren't met with success most of the time, but I thought he was one of the more consistent performers throughout the match, experience speaks volumes at this level.

I begin to see what people mean by Ronaldo becoming a bit too cheaky for his own good. For one part he has always been a bit cocky and by this time after this season you'd think he can afford to be a bit arrogant but today was an example of how to utilize your skills the wrong way. Too often did he try to be too fancy. He's great at running past players by pushing the ball forward and catching up to it, but he's still immature at making those Maradona-like runs through defenders, especially against this Milan side. The entire second half he was pinned to the wing, and was subsequently unusable to us for the most part. Nontheless, he'll continue to remain a key in the next leg, let's just hope he doesn't pick up a yellow either.

While Fletcher was the heartbeat of our comeback, Rooney was that final punch, his workrate only equalled by Fletcher's. Both goals taken brilliantly and composed. Who knew he'd have four goals in three Champions League games (and in the quarters and semis to boot)? Four more Wayne and you could win the Golden Boot in the competition. :D

I will write more about the second leg when I get home.

[MtP07]

Damn, SirManc actually sounds happy :eek: :eek:

[bestbecks]

Oh yeah, I forgot to add this in... I'M ABSOLUTELY ********ING BUZZING!!! :D

[SirManchester]

Damn, SirManc actually sounds happy :eek: :eek:

DROPPIN' LOADS!

[Achtung]

Back from the pub. Fantastic pure game of football from both teams, thankfully free of the hacking, cynicism, and whining that we're sure to see tomorrow. Kudos to both teams for some great passing, intelligent defending, and smart play in the final third.

I think that when certain players stepped it up a bit more, we obviously looked more dangerous. Scholes was on the verge of being substituted before setting up Rooney's first goal. From then on, he looked very dangerous. Heinze had some very poor play in the first half, including on both Milan goals. But he recovered in the second half and looked far more stable. Ronaldo was dangerous in the first half, but didn't utilize his teammates nearly enough. When he did, things opened up far more.

I won't elaborate too much, but its fantastic that we never gave up, kept playing our game, and ultimately came back to give ourselves a fighting chance. It's still going to be a difficult second leg, but the mountain is climbable.

Still buzzing. :D

[MtP07]

DROPPIN' LOADS!

:D :D

[Cloudkicker09]

I did not get to see the game, because I had to cover for some twit at work :mad: but I am so happy that we won at Old Trafford, Rooney and Ronaldo really saved the day and made me proud to me be a Man Utd fan.

I feel that are our chances are very strong to win the 2nd leg and advance to the final, where either chelski or chickenfool will be waiting for us. Please tell me that Rio, Neville and hopefully Vidic will be back for the 2nd leg, because WE NEED THEM!!!!

After hearing about this game and Rooney's last minute goal, I feel that it is destiny for us to win the TREBLE :D

PS Happy Yom Haatzmaut, Israel's Independence day everyone, WOW wasn't today a great day!!!!

[Sapphire]

I'm happppppy. :p

I was completely satisfied with 2-2, and that last goal was just a wonderful surprise. I knew we'd be alright in the game after the first 15 minutes or so; we looked so dangerous around goal early in the game, then seemed to lose it a bit after Kaka's first.

I wish I had taped the game, because Fletcher's awesomeness did not wash over me as it did many of you (I think I just wasn't paying enough attention to him) and I'd love to see it again just to pay attention to the Fletchtasticness.

I think we're going to miss Evra in the next leg, and not just because of our personnel shortage -- he was a beast in his tackling, a pit bull, OK a small pit bull, maybe a terrier of some kind? Anyway, he was badass. I thought Carrick and Scholes were pretty blah. Oshea was a tall human body in the center of defense -- which is all he needs to be. (Don't get hurt, Johnny). Heinze did well on the left, particularly as it seemed that they were constantly trying to attack through him. Ronaldo was kind of a yawner today by his usual superhuman standards, but he worked hard. Giggs was hot and cold for me, but hot enough. And Rooney was much more composed than usual; my husband actually remarked that Rooney seems so calm and cool in front of goal; what a level-headed striker he seems . . . (I KNOW!! :eek: ). Van der Sar made me really nervous; I just don't trust him anymore.

Overall, a strong performance from us, particularly given our man shortage -- it's wild to think of how many near goals we had in this match; we could have easily scored several more. San Siro will be tough, but I'm so proud of our guys right now, I really couldn't care less about all that right now.

Manchester United = beautiful. :)

[Devil500]

United Forever WE SHALL NOT DIE!

[Jc18star]

I had to miss the live showing because of that pain in the ass known as college and handing in a massive project which ruined my day. I knew the result but I must say seeing the game on tv was much better than following the match tracker.

Rooney stepped up in a big way tonight, even though he wasn't setting the world on fire until his first goal, he showed his class and ability to win a match on his own and on the big stage.

Overall it was a good win IMO even though it wasn't steady all the way though.

I hope we sure up the backline before the 2nd leg, other than that I am not going to complain, I am just going to enjoy the fact that something went my way today.

[MyHouse!]

Unf*cking believable.

I just have no words.

YOU CAN'T COUNT MANCHESTER UNITED OUT!!!

Wow...just wow.

[Lancashire Lad]

I was at the game tonight and forgot to set the video. No highlights programmes on TV :(

Does anyone have links to the goals or highlights? Can you post them please if you do. Thanks

[sitati_kituyi]

One unlucky guy got kicked out of the stadium just for removing his shirt and gesturing at Milan fans. The United fans around had a verbal go at the stewards, but they brought backup. Only low point of tonight.

...and 2 goals conceded, of course.

[sitati_kituyi]

I was at the game tonight and forgot to set the video. No highlights programmes on TV :(

Does anyone have links to the goals or highlights? Can you post them please if you do. Thanks

All the goals here (http://manchesterunitedgoals.blogspot.com/2007/04/manchester-united-milan.html)

Also, good vid of last goal build-up and all, here (http://youtube.com/watch?v=HnQLSA722bw)

[andrew neave]

Great lads a fantastic result in a difficult situation Fletcher was a revalation, and looks like there is room for him to improve and be more consistant, If we can get Saha Rio Vidic or Neville back for the return it could be a wonderfull return match in Italy

But !! dont you think you can read into the fact that no substitutes came on, even in the last 10 min so that a Fresh forward could run at a tiring Milan Defence. No Fergie decided that Smith and Solskear would not present any more of a threat to the Milan defence than the players out there after 80min, this is what Fergie really thinks of Smith and Solskear NUFF SAID

And can any one see the logic of letting Rossi and Pique go out on loan signing an agreements promising not to call them back to United til the end of the season. how stupid can you get !!!!!! does anyone in ManUniteds managment think ahead??? How helpfull would Rossi and Pique be to play for United in the next few weeks, dam it there Manchester United players, there ours !!!!!!!!!!!

Lastly I hope we get the same ref next week he seems to blow his whistle and give a free kick when any player hit the deck, even Man U players, Once Ronaldo in the first half, run at the Milan defence and they retreated and retreated all the way back into there penalty area, afraid of giving a Penalty away.
I thought it was curious that Ronaldo was switched to the left wing after half time, at this stage i dont care how we get our goals, Ronaldo should have been told to run into the Milan Penalty area, and let the Ref do the rest !!! Its not our fault that we had a Whistle happy ref!!! watch the tape or DVR and replay the match and see how many times he blew for stupid free kicks for both sides.
We have to patch up Rio and Saha or Vidic some how.

I am not critizing our wonderfull team they are doing there best in stressfull situations every match from now on is a Cup Final

[Devil500]

All the goals here (http://manchesterunitedgoals.blogspot.com/2007/04/manchester-united-milan.html)

Also, good vid of last goal build-up and all, here (http://youtube.com/watch?v=HnQLSA722bw)

CAN't wait full speed ATHENS!!

[MtP07]

Great lads a fantastic result in a difficult situation Fletcher was a revalation, and looks like there is room for him to improve and be more consistant, If we can get Saha Rio Vidic or Neville back for the return it could be a wonderfull return match in Italy

But !! dont you think you can read into the fact that no substitutes came on, even in the last 10 min so that a Fresh forward could run at a tiring Milan Defence. No Fergie decided that Smith and Solskear would not present any more of a threat to the Milan defence than the players out there after 80min, this is what Fergie really thinks of Smith and Solskear NUFF SAID

And can any one see the logic of letting Rossi and Pique go out on loan signing an agreements promising not to call them back to United til the end of the season. how stupid can you get !!!!!! does anyone in ManUniteds managment think ahead??? How helpfull would Rossi and Pique be to play for United in the next few weeks, dam it there Manchester United players, there ours !!!!!!!!!!!

Lastly I hope we get the same ref next week he seems to blow his whistle and give a free kick when any player hit the deck, even Man U players, Once Ronaldo in the first half, run at the Milan defence and they retreated and retreated all the way back into there penalty area, afraid of giving a Penalty away.
I thought it was curious that Ronaldo was switched to the left wing after half time, at this stage i dont care how we get our goals, Ronaldo should have been told to run into the Milan Penalty area, and let the Ref do the rest !!! Its not our fault that we had a Whistle happy ref!!! watch the tape or DVR and replay the match and see how many times he blew for stupid free kicks for both sides.
We have to patch up Rio and Saha or Vidic some how.

I am not critizing our wonderfull team they are doing there best in stressfull situations every match from now on is a Cup Final


1/10

[andrew neave]

Mtp07 minus one hundred out of ten

You think its a good thing that we have Pique and Rossi out on loan and cant bring them back even though there ManUtd players , great pat the Managment on the back.

And we had dummys on the bench tonight Fergie thought so.

I Repeat a great victory for the Team all 11 of them they are doing everything right !!!!!!!!!!!pity nobody is helping them.
Fletcher was fantastic

You game for another reply ????? LOL